"Fortress Europe
- Stage 2": EU Border Police proposedOn 7 May the European Commission produced
a Communication entitled: "Towards integrated management
of the external borders of the Member States of the EU"
(COM(2002)233 final, 7.5.02). The Communication follows the instruction
given by the European Council (the 15 EU governments) meeting
in Laeken on 14-15 December to put forward proposals.

The speed and urgency proposed by the Commission is due to
a long-standing distrust of the border controls ability of the
countries applying to join the EU and to the post 11 September
direction of the EU which puts "security" above all
else - as the Commission Communication states: "The European
Union's external borders are.. a place where a common security
identity is asserted"

1. The creation of an "External borders practitioners
common unit" which will put into effect the many short and
medium term measures including joint multinational teams.

2. The introduction of a "security procedure" called
"PROSECUR" based on "direct links and exchanges"
of "data and information between authorities concerned with
security at external borders". PROSECUR would have access
to the Schengen Information System (SIS), "privileged links
with Europol", access to the new database being created
on visas and its own "encrypted Intranet".

3. In the long term the creation of a European Corps of Border
Guards (no longer controlled and accountable at the national
level) with a: "permanent headquarters staff structure charged
with its operational command, the management of its personnel
and equipment"

The special analysis for Statewatch concludes:

"there is marginal reference to protection of asylum-seekers,
no mention at all of data protection or other human rights considerations,
and no suggested rules for the legal or political accountability
or control of the common unit and the information system of the
Border Corps. In fact the Commission explicitly suggests setting
up the new information exchange system without any legal rules
whatsoever governing its operation."

"As for PROSECUR, the Commission explicitly envisions
that it will only be placed on a legal footing in the 'long term'.
Unless the operation of PROSECUR in the meantime is confined
merely to non-personal data, and/or making use of the existing
rules of access governing existing databases which include personal
data (which seems unlikely from the tenor of the Communication),
then the legality of this approach is extremely doubtful. It
is clear from the case law of the European Court of Human Rights
that any measures interfering with the right to private and family
life must be 'prescribed by law'; a purely informal decision
to exchange personal data would therefore breach the European
Convention on Human Rights. In fact the words 'data protection'
do not even appear anywhere in the Communication."

"There is no discussion of the rules that would have
to govern such a Corps as regards data protection, protection
of human rights and asylum rules or judicial and political accountability.
The main route of accountability envisioned seems to be control
by the 'common unit', but this would further beg the question
in turn as to the adequacy of judicial and legal controls on
the common unit."